Is Jesus the Real Master of Suspense?
Sometimes we like suspense, sometimes we don’t. Or, sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t.
John 10 says: 31 The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” 33 The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.” 34 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? 35 If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken— 36 do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? 37 If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; 38 but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” 39 Again they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.
Sometimes we like suspense, sometimes we don’t.
The Jews were getting antsy with Jesus; they wanted a plain answer of whether He was the Messiah or not. But, remember, they were looking for an earthly Messiah to save them from their oppressors. They weren’t thinking in the same Messianic terms that we do today when it comes to Jesus.
So, big surprise to them when Jesus starts talking about the Father and Him being One. That was more than they could take and it was time for a good ‘ole stoning of another blasphemer. They weren’t going to entertain any more of His arguments and vague language.
But Jesus was always very intentional about keeping His true identity and goals secret. It was not yet His time.
But Jesus was no fool either. It should have been no surprise to Him that the Jews were going to misunderstand Him. So, when they accuse Him of blasphemy, He’s got to say: whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait a minute here. I’m just saying that I am one of the chosen of God, just like you, as the Old Testament says, and God is working through me. We are all called gods and because of it I am a son of God. That’s what I mean! You can’t stone me for saying that the Father is working through me as a/the son of God. That’s not blasphemy. Just look at these works and believe that the Father sent me guard and watch over those whom I teach and am trusted with caring for. That’s all I’m saying.
Nice try Jesus. The Jews didn’t buy it, and Jesus knew very well that they weren’t buying it. Jesus liked a little double-meaning because it would help when the world looked back on His teachings and miracles and they would be able to connect the dots in spectacular fashion. Jesus was absolutely right in His interpretation when He quotes Psalm 82 here, but it was plain that this was not the full intent of what He was saying. But, Jesus didn’t mind a little controversy because He always had an answer to keep it interesting. It’s genius really. His goal was to get them to think through the process and to really examine what the Scriptures said.
When it comes to spiritual things, a lot of people don’t want to keep it interesting.
I can’t pretend that I would be able to make the word-plays that Jesus was such a master of doing. I believe Jesus did some of these things to perpetuate the Man of Mystery persona that the Jews didn’t want. They were looking for clarity; Jesus’ message always was that some would understand and others would not. If you can’t believe in the works and see what the progression is leading to, then no amount of works are going to counter your charge of blasphemy.
Jesus wanted to keep the mystery going. If you’re masterful enough at suspense, it adds to the story. You pick up followers. You make people want to go deeper to be able to try and figure it out. Jesus was giving people the opportunity along the way to figure it out. It helped to see if their hearts were in the right place. What He found was that some had the stomach (and heart) for the suspense and others did not.
Those who are ok with some of the suspense will find their spiritual lives strengthened because there is always an element of suspense with the nature of God. There will always be things we cannot know about God, but it pushes us to learn more, study more, and be more at peace with the things that are incomprehensible. Others, who are tired of the suspense and just wish God’s voice would come out of the Heavens, must ask for greater faith. Faith gives us the opportunity to “enjoy” the suspense while treasuring what God has clearly revealed in Jesus Christ. Jesus wanted to keep the Jews (and us today) continually pursuing the right understanding of Scripture and God’s plan of salvation.
Unfortunately, some just are not interested. They have their own understanding, their own preconceived notions of who God is, and nothing is going to change their minds. They are not interested in testing the limits of faith. But, that’s how God changes us and changes the world. The suspense helps push us to the limits of what we think we can take and what we think we can understand, and it is in that place that God shows us more. It is meant to make us uncomfortable. It is meant to make us nervous. When we read words like this of Jesus without understanding what He is doing, it makes us think that the church missed something, that Jesus really wasn’t who He said He was or He misstepped. Then we do our study, connect with the whole narrative of Jesus’ ministry and the further narrative of the Bible, and we get a greater glimpse of how much of a MENSA member Jesus really was. And we sit in awe, as we should. His glory is heightened in our minds and it stirs us to further study.
That is God’s plan. Are you up for it?
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